If You Ever Die
by Hadasah
Summary: A drabble. A LONG drabble. Lemon that became a plot... LinkxDLink Dark reminisces on his past with Link and struggles to convey his feelings to his counterpart.
1. Chapter 1

**OMGZ NO WAYZ my first lemon?! WTF =D**

**Yes indeed, Hadasah's first lemon fic. And hoo boy, (I think it sucks) but it seems fairly decent. **

**LinkxDark Link, with a nice long lemon(s) and a little taste of a plot. Hope all you yaoi fans enjoy.**

*****It MAY be undergoing more edits, but for now, this copy makes me happy enough squeal every time I read it.******

**Truly, this pairing depresses me and yet fills me with the most hope I have ever experienced; all at once. I really hope that things work out; in whatever world they live in, however they accomplish what they need to do to be together. **

**Just SOOO meant to be.**

**Anyway, enough drabble; I assume you all came here to read my smuttiest of smutties, so I shall step aside and let you descend into the madness that is a 3 am story….**

--

**If You Ever Die**

He watched with bored eyes as Link hurried through the Spirit Temple, sword drawn and ready. He smirked as the hero jumped back in surprise as the statue he ran past came to life, growling fiercely. For all that the Hero of Time was the courageous to-be-saviour of Hyrule, he hated the part of his job that involved inanimate objects coming to life and trying to throttle the life out of him.

He gave a bark of laughter a while later as he watched Link battle a floor master with a wild look in his eyes, his precision with his sword a little less than accurate as he clearly was terrified of the invisible monster. Floor masters, and only one other monster evoked that kind of reaction, or reactions that he'd seen, out of the hero, and that was the silent and deadly ceiling masters. If there was one thing that Link could not abide, it was people, or things, touching his head. Particularly something that clearly wanted to rip that head off.

He wondered, for perhaps the hundredth time, why he had chosen to follow this blond male. He recalled the first time they'd met, how weak he had been, under Ganondorf's spells that kept him bound to the Evil King's will. He remembered feeling the first real emotions he'd had when Link plunged the sword of Evil's Bane into his chest, and remembered gripping the blade, revelling in the feeling of fear, of curiosity at the look on the blond's face as he held the sword without being killed, and the sudden lust he'd felt at the glint in the blue eyes before him. As Link left him lying in a puddle of his own blood, he had listened as the Hero collected the Longshot, and had lain in the water, smiling to himself. He was real. He was living. And he was free.

He also knew he was solid because he'd followed the Hero throughout the rest of the temple and had bumped into him several times when the man stopped suddenly. He didn't know why he was following the blond, or what the blond thought of his game of tag-along, but he continued to do so. He realized that why he was following the man after he'd nearly fallen into the temple boss's acidic pool and he'd had to grab the blond by the belt and yank him back from the water to collide breathlessly with his chest. Link blushed, and everything became crystal clear to Dark at that moment. Link had then proceeded to destroy the monster without so much as a second glance to Dark. Even after he had emerged from the exhausting conversation with his 'fiancee' Ruto, Link had found Dark waiting for him, silent as he had been during their time in the temple. Together, they watched the water in Lake Hylia gradually rise until it lapped at their feet. Well, it lapped at Link's feet, because Dark refused to go near the beautifully clear water no matter how enticing it looked because he'd had enough damn water to last him a life time.

Link had called his horse and ridden away after that.

And his shadow had followed him.

--

It turned into a pattern, he would follow the Hero through each temple, always end up helping the rather clumsy blond in some way, and be waiting silently when he emerged from his conversation with whatever Sage he had awakened that time. Dark had grown used to the silence that lay between them, but felt an inexorable pull to hear the cute blond talk, sing, anything! but this damn silence between them. Growing fed up, he decided that he could stalk the blond a little closer to home and came into Link's camp the night after he had beaten the fire temple. He was exhausted and laying as far as he could from the fire while still benefiting from its warmth and light. Dark had walked silently into the camp, smirking inwardly at the shocked look on the blond's face when he saw his black haired counterpart enter the flickering circle of light. After he'd gaped at Dark for more than a minute, he snapped his mouth shut, glared at him, and turned over under his blanket and promptly ignored him. Taking this as a sign of 'whatever. screw it.', he came fully into Link's camp, and stopped when he heard a low, admonishing nicker greet him. He turned to see Epona, Link's fiery mount, looking knowingly at him through dark eyes. He walked closer, and knelt, allowing her to sniff him all over. He felt her acceptance when she lipped his face with a whiskery lip and took the apple he'd held behind his back from his hands with delicate teeth.

He returned to the camp a few minutes later, leading his slate gray coloured stallion into the ring of light the fire provided. The excitement at having a -female- travelmate, showed on his mount's face as he untied the horse's tack and let the two animals acquaint themselves. By the time he'd arranged himself with his stallion's saddle as his pillow, the two were lying quite close together, snuffling contentedly with their eyes closed, noses touching. He smirked as he glanced at the tuft of blonde hair that poked out from under the blankets on the far side of the fire, mourning the loss of a perfectly good idea of rubbing noses as a means of introducing himself as more than a companion to the Hero. He'd likely get his nose sliced off.

--

The next morning, he woke up to see a- pleasantly- naked Link with his back facing him, blond hair sticking out in all directions as he folded up his blankets. He suppressed a laugh as the blond glanced at him, and seeing him awake, lunged for his tunic while avoiding Dark's eyes. Dark got up from his makeshift bed, ignoring the blond's gasp -secretly, he smirked- at his naked torso and... other naked parts. He pulled on his white breeches, struggling as they stretched over his well muscled thighs. He enjoyed the look Link gave him as he realized that the dark haired male didn't wear any kind of undergarment. Clearly, he wasn't the only one who found the other attractive. He stood up after he had his breeches on and hunted around for his black tunic. He turned around to find a blushing Link holding it out to him, his gaze directed resolutely at his feet. Dark had smiled then, and made sure his fingers curled around Link's as he took his shirt from him. Leaning forward slightly, he said, directly into the Hero's -pierced- ear, "Thanks, cutie."

He walked away, a bounce in his step as he dressed and saddled his horse, looking at the blond out of the corner of his eye and enjoying the flaming red face he saw there. He went to his saddle bags as he left his stallion to graze beside Epona, who he had also saddled (he enjoyed the small murmur of surprise from Link as he saddled the Hero's supposedly wild mare), and drew out his sword, belting it to his back. He turned to mount his horse, and heard a low voice say, "You're a traitor," and turned to see Link glaring at his mare as she lipped his hand calmly, shaking her reins so they jingled pleasantly.

"She's a sucker for apples," he interjected. Link jumped a little and glanced quickly to see Dark grinning at him. It took him a minute, but eventually, he smiled.

Dark found he really, really loved Link's smile.

--

A few days later, on their way to the Shadow temple, he'd managed to pry that much information out of the reluctant blond, he called to his mount with a high pitched whistle after they had finished their lunch. He smiled as the gray stallion raced up to him, followed closely by a heaving Epona, who nipped the male as she passed him. He didn't bite back, but his ears swivelled forward and his gaze followed the mare as she sauntered past, flicking her tail high as she pranced over to Link.

He mounted his stallion, and stopped, mid swing, as he heard Link say something. "What?"

"I said, does he have a name?" Dark looked down at Link, who was standing rather close to his leg, about to mount Epona. His hair hid his face as his fingers played absentmindedly with her tack.

"No," he responded. "Have one in mind?" Link looked up at Dark, a hint of a smile on his face as he met Dark's red eyes.

"Itzal," he said, his eyes flicking away shyly. Dark cocked his head, turning his horse so he could sit closer to Link as the blond mounted his horse. Epona reached for the newly christened "Itzal"'s flanks with her teeth before Link pulled her away. They faced one another and Dark smiled as the horses snuffled noses once more. Link blushed as Dark looked at him, smiling, revealing his pointed teeth.

"What does it mean?"

"Shadow."

He laughed, out loud. Link started, before grinning sheepishly. He turned Epona away, gruffly stating, "Well, it suits him."

"I know. Just ironic is all." He urged Itzal into a slow canter to match Epona, watching as Link's face turned that pleasant shade of red again.

"Maybe I like the irony," he heard the blond whisper. He smiled, and Itzal misstepped closer to Epona and their legs brushed against one another. Dark shamelessly took advantage of their closeness and let his hand brush over the blond's thigh as he responded, "good."

Epona stepped delicately away, flicking an ear at Dark. She obviously had understood what he had done, and found it amusing. He smiled and looked at Link, aware that the Hero was now pointedly avoiding his gaze. He laughed and urged Itzal into a run, which Epona giddily leaped into, effectively stopping any further conversation their humans might have had.

--

That night, they entered Kakariko Village, and rented, with money Link provided, a room to share, and stalls for their horses. They walked into the town square to find a meal, Link whistling through his teeth and Dark walking closely to him, unease clear on his face. Link looked up at Dark (who was about three inches taller) after the man had bumped into him for the tenth time and asked, "What's wrong?"

"... It's too... crowded."

"There are twenty other people in this square..."

"Like I said, too crowded."

Link shook his head, and to Dark's surprise, took his hand (he noticed Link's blush with a flicker of glee) and led him to a small restaurant where he treated Dark to a bowl of something he called "pasta". He enjoyed it immensely, especially the way Link watched him eat the long noodles with surprising dexterity. The Hero seemed to have quite the interest in the way he used his lips and tongue to eat. Catching the blond's eye, he raised an eyebrow as he let his tongue flick out to lick a bit of sauce from his fork. Link immediately looked away, not before Dark caught the spark that flared in his eyes at the movement.

Progress, he thought, warmth curling in his abdomen. He made sure his feet brushed against Link's as they stood up to leave, walking just a little closer to the smaller blond than friendship required. The man didn't seem to mind, or notice. For some reason, he seemed to have completely blanked out.

Taking the initiative, he basically steered the Hero back to their inn and smiled inwardly as he realized that they would be sharing a room (and a bed) that night. Link seemed to have realized that too, because when they stepped into the room, with Dark's hand still on his waist, guiding him, he stepped away quickly. "I'll sleep on the floor," he breathed, not meeting Dark's eyes.

"..." He didn't say anything, just moved a little closer to the blond so he could close and lock the door behind them. "Take the bed," he said, deciding not to push the fragile bond between them any further than he already had that night.

A few minutes later, the fire in the grate of their room was banked and glowing faintly, and they lay in their respective beds. Dark stood up, a minute later, naked from the waist up. He caught Link's gaze, noting with satisfaction that the man was turned in his bed toward him, before he spoke. "I'm going to go check on Itzal. And Epona," he added, before walking to the door.

"You should put on a shirt," he heard the blond say quietly. He turned around, hiding his expression as he looked for Link among the darkness of the room. The man was sitting up in bed now, the covers rumpled around him, his bare skin showing in the gaping collar of his tunic. His blue eyes shone in the flickering light of the fire.

"The stable's just down the hall, Link. I'll be fine." He turned to go again, and stopped when he heard the Hero mutter something, even softer.

"What was that?" He asked, stepping back towards Link. The blond lay down quickly, pulling the sheets up around him as his face turned red.

"Nothing. Thanks for checking on Epona. Good night... Dark." It was the first time Link had said his name. Smiling, he brushed his hand against the crease in the blankets that he knew was the man's foot under the covers as he said, "my pleasure."

Once in the stables, he was confronted by possibly the biggest erection he had faced yet, due to Link's irrepressible and completely accidental sex appeal. If Link noticed that he was gone a good fifteen minutes to "check on the horses" and came back with noticeably looser breeches, he didn't say anything.

--

The next morning, Dark awoke before Link, saddled the horses, packed up all their things, and had eaten- and Link was still in bed when he had finished all of these things. Smirking at the idea of waking up Link, he strode back to their room, opening the door stealthily and slipping inside. He heard the steady breathing from the bed and knew that the Hero was still fast asleep. Dark sat on the bed, next to Link, before he began to decide how best to wake the man up.

He decided on his most favourite tactic; he stood up and placed both hands on either side of the blond's body, leaning over him and blocking out the light. He pressed his weight into the mattress, his black hair hanging over his shoulder as he waited for the warrior to react to the change. It took him only a few seconds, but it was worth the wait. Link opened his eyes and pressed himself back into the pillow at the sight of ruby-red eyes inches from his own.

"Good morning," he chirped happily, letting one hand ruffle through Link's hair.

"uh...." Dark let one finger drift onto the man's neck, watching the way the muscles in his throat tensed, before he stood up. "Time to go, Link."

He heard a faint groan as he pulled away and flicked his hair over his shoulder, having done away with his tiresome black hat ages ago on their journey.

He let the door close slowly behind him, not before hearing the soft murmur of, "nice wake up call..."

Dark smirked and waited outside with the horses, composing himself as if he had done nothing out of the ordinary. The cemetery where they were headed was about a two hour ride north of the village, and Link remained sullenly quiet throughout the entire two hours. Dark blissfully ignored him, chattering away happily. Epona snorted an hour into the ride and bit Dark on the leg. Itzel laid his ears back but didn't snap at the mare, and Link laughed at Dark's muttered curse as he rubbed his sore calf. They both remained silent for the rest of the ride, after that.

---

Link gradually became more tense as they found the entrance to the Shadow Temple. Throughout that next week, they ventured in and out of the temple, camping outside of the cemetery each night and venturing back into the depths of the temple each morning. Dark could see that toll the temple's horrors were taking on the Hero, and decided that Link needed a break from the temple after they returned to their camp after the sun set, Link limping and having given up his pride to let Dark help him return to the camp. A stalfos had smashed the broad edge of its sword into his knees and given him a huge purpling bruise that throbbed down to his bones. Therefore, he found himself clinging to Dark every step of the way back to their camp, his traitorous legs refusing to take his weight.

Epona rushed over to her master when she saw him limping, and Itzel remained close behind. Dark thought he saw something different about the way the two horses acted toward one another, and was quite sure that they had become mates.

Lucky, he growled, inwardly. Remembering his vow to help Link 'relax' he smiled. He hunted their dinner for the two of them and cooked it, forcing Link to eat at least half of what he was given. The Hero was becoming thin at the amount of food he voided from himself after he faced particularly gruesome creatures in the temples.

After they'd cleaned up from their supper, Link readied his bed, not noticing that Dark had yet to make his own bed for the night. He stood up, and was surprised as he bumped into Dark when he straightened. "Sorry," he muttered, still oblivious to the obvious stare Dark was giving him. "What?" He asked, a minute later, finally meeting Dark's gaze as they stood there, silently.

"Idiot," he ground out, pulling Link into his arms.

"Dark, what-"

"Just shut up." Dark pulled Link flush against him, his arms wrapping around him, dangerously close to his ass as he walked Link backward with him, letting the backs of his knees hit Epona's saddle.

They collapsed together, Dark on top of Link, still holding him tightly. "Let go," Link whispered, turning on his side, away from Dark. He shushed the Hero, refusing to be put off. He kept one arm wound around Link as he pulled off the blond's hat and tossed it away, then brushed aside the hair that lay over the back of Link's neck aside. Dark leaned forward, letting his lips taste the pale skin before them. Link gave a muffled sound that didn't sound like a refusal, so he did it again before pulling back, satisfied.

He shifted their position so he was effectively spooning Link, one leg hooked around Link's so he couldn't roll away. Link tensed and then relaxed as he felt Dark slip one hand between them and begin to knead the thick, tangled muscles of his back. He couldn't help the grateful sigh that escaped him as he melted against Dark. Gradually, Dark released his other arm from around Link's waist and worked with both hands at relaxing the blond's tense muscles. Ten minutes later, he was smugly holding a fast asleep, completely relaxed blond male against him, under the blankets and spooning no less. He looked up as Epona walked past them. She winked one large eye, lazily (for a horse, she was all too human), and walked away, joining Itzel as they settled down a short distance away from Link and Dark.

Dark fell asleep a short while later, but not before enjoying Link's mid-dream thrashing as he turned and hooked a leg over Dark's hip and snuggled into his chest, one hand wrapping around his waist.

--

When Link woke up, he was distinctly aware that he was pressed against a naked male. A naked Dark. Make that entwined with a naked Dark, under blankets, to boot.

He tensed and Dark let him go. "Morning," he said, his low voice pleasant as he slid out from underneath the blanket.

_How can he be so calm?! _Link furiously thought, watching with equal parts embarrassment and pleasure as Dark pulled on his black shirt. The slender waist rippled with muscles as he lifted his arms, his head disappearing inside the folds of the tunic. Link stared, unabashedly for the second Dark's eyes were hidden, at the beautiful "V" Dark's narrow torso made with his wide, muscled shoulders. When Dark looked over at Link, a minute later as he slid his belt on over his tunic, Link was also aware of how hot his face felt under Dark's red gaze.

--

They completed the task inside the Shadow Temple that day, returning to their camp in the late hours of the evening, the sun fading before them as they came within sight of their horses.

Link came out, shaking like a leaf, and being carried on Dark's back because of a bad wound in one leg. Luckily, Dark said he'd had enough foresight to buy some of the "red potion" he'd heard about and bought in Kakariko and carried in his saddlebags. He set Link down on the ground after spreading out his own black travel blanket, then turned around and said clearly, "strip."

"What?!" Link exclaimed, and Dark heard him struggle to get up. He turned back to the Hero and pushed him flat on his back, meeting his embarrassed stare with critical red eyes.

"You want to have your leg rot off? The floor master took a nice chunk out of your leg with nails that had Nayru-knows-what underneath it, now strip or I'll strip you myself." Dark turned back around, still acting as professional as he could while a part of him smugly saw the absence of fear that was in Link's eyes as he told the man he'd strip him if he refused.

When he returned to Link's side, he'd cleverly managed to cover up his bottom half with the blanket and still leave his thigh exposed. Dark knelt next to Link, setting down the red bottle beside a clean cloth and water bottle as he bent to examine the wound. He cleaned the jagged cut with the water before he set aside the cloth and looked again. Without blood matting the area, he could see that the wound was way less serious than he'd taken it to be, and instantly relaxed. He could not say the same for Link, though, as he saw the blond was trembling faintly, his slender hands gripping the black cloth covering him.

"Alright, Link?" Dark asked as he slid his hands over the Hero's wound, deftly bandaging it with swift hands. The blond nodded, a faint blush on his cheeks even as he flinched and one hand gripped the front of Dark's tunic briefly as he tugged on the bandage to tighten it. He released the shirt a second later, his cheeks flaming even brighter as he looked away while Dark finished binding off the wound. A red bottle passed into his vision and he took it and downed the contents before remembering to take a breath. Spluttering, he handed Dark back the empty potion bottle, gasping as the liquid seared a hot path down his throat.

"Has a bit of a kick, I see," Dark observed. He patted Link's knee before saying, "I'll need to check that there's no rot in the wound tomorrow after the potion starts to work, so don't play with the bandage at all. Just don't touch yourself, is all," Dark finished, starting as he realized the unintentional innuendo he'd inadvertently inserted into the sentence.

Link caught it as well, his gaze locking on his clasped hands before him, nodding his head while his blond hair hid his flaming face. Dark leaned forward, once again deciding to push his luck.

"Link?" The blond looked up, flushed deeper, then looked back down. Dark leaned forward and brushed some of the blond hair off of the Hero's forehead as he placed a soft kiss there, on the heated, pale skin. "Good job today.... Sleep well." He began to get up, but stopped as Link tentatively reached out and gripped the edge of his tunic.

"Stay...." He cleared his throat before looking up at Dark, his blush spreading but his voice growing in steadiness, his eyes locked on Dark's. "Stay with me, tonight. I could... use another massage."

Dark smiled and nodded- hiding the excitement in his eyes-, getting up to bank the fire and feed the horses before he pulled off his tunic and boots. Telling Link to stay still, he carefully pulled off the blond's boots and arranged his legs before crawling in behind him, spooning him again. This time, Link relaxed almost instantly against him, and when he fell asleep, he turned over and cuddled closer to Dark than he had before. Dark smiled, pulling Link half on top of him so as to save the Hero any pain on his leg from resting his weight on the wound, but also to feel more of Link's body pressed against his own. For now, this much was enough.

--

When Dark woke in the morning, he struggled to remain calm as Link shifted over the worst case of morning wood he'd ever had. Fighting the urge to flip the ravishing little blond over and grind into him, he delicately gripped Link and slid him off of his hips, then bolted from underneath the blankets, before he could think of touching the Hero again.

Link watched through his lashes as Dark mounted a surprised looking Epona bareback and galloped away, his dark skinned face ablaze with a fierce blush.

When Dark returned an hour later, Link was still lazing beneath the blankets, enjoying the morning sun's warmth. The black haired man came back, still riding Epona, and she seemed to be prancing this time. As if she knew something. Dark scowled as he got off Epona and whispered something in her ear with a grim expression. In response, Epona delicately stepped on his foot before jumping away and avoiding Dark's annoyed swat. Itzel came thundering into the camp a minute later, joining Epona for a mutual morning grooming.

Link had kept his eyes closed, watching all this through his eyelashes; now he saw Dark carefully making his way toward Link, making slow, quiet steps on the giveaway grass. He shifted, and saw Dark freeze, something flickering in his eyes as he watched Link turn completely over to face him, apparently still asleep.

Link waited, his heart pounding as Dark came closer, still watching from under partially closed eyes. The next moment, Dark leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to Link's forehead, brushing a hand through his blond hair.

Dark pulled back, then put on a friendly face as he shook Link 'awake'. "Hey, lazy-ass. It's almost noon. Let's go!" The black haired male stood up, leaving Link to 'wake up' and stare after him, utterly confused as to what had just happened.

---

Two weeks later found them sharing a campfire with bemused Gerudo thieves who admired Link's blond hair while they eagerly discussed the newest male member of the Gerudo. Link was quite put out that Dark had been the one to earn the female thieves' trust first, gaining membership in the Gerudo and access to their training facilities.

However, the Gerudo treated him like an honoured guest and had given him and Dark a shared (did they know something he didn't?) room with a balcony attached that overlooked the desert and the distant, hazy outline of the huge mass one of the women had mentioned in passing was called the Desert Colossus. He and Dark were both richly dressed in Gerudo clothes; Dark taking to the smooth, leathery pants the Gerudo males wore with a delight Link hadn't seen him express before, and he had been given a few sets of loose, flowing robes, one of which he wore now and that he discovered had massive slits over each leg that ran all the way up to his hips.

He was wearing his breeches underneath the robes, because, however much he liked the Gerudo, they were still women, and women embarrassed him. It would be all he needed to die of shame if they were to see a lot more of him than he really wanted. And the cut out portions of his robe showed _exactly_ that.

In the meantime, the Gerudo women had just praised Din and the "Mother" (who he had discovered was the Sage of Spirit, the next target for awakening), and were serving him and Dark and the other thieves richly spiced desert fowl. The current leader, a woman named Kurooma, toasted Dark with the Gerudo red spiced wine, her dark eyes sparkling over the rim of the glass as she drank. Dark returned her smile, lifting his glass in salute as he downed the mug.

Link looked down, suddenly irritated and wanting nothing more than to be out in the desert, out somewhere, on Epona. Alone and running. But running from what, he had no idea. His night was now looking grim and doomed to put him in a horrible mood.

An elbow in his side made him flinch and he snapped to attention, looking for the source of his disruption. A young, violet haired man smiled at him broadly, and he introduced himself as Kafei, a traveller who had fallen in love with the desert. He had stumbled into the Gerudo camp, and, _very_surprisingly, had been taken in by the notoriously male-hating thieves. Kurooma's second in command now, he enjoyed life as a Gerudo to the fullest. Link began an animated conversation with the young male, whom, he discovered was not from Hyrule, but from a strange country called Termina.

As the meal continued and Dark chatted absentmindedly with Kurooma, he found his gaze constantly drifting over to Link and his dinner partner. He found a slow burn of resentment churning in the pit of his stomach and he glared into his wine glass as he downed his third round of the heady liquid. The churning in his stomach gave no sign of letting up, even with all of his attempts to soothe the unruly feeling of jealousy that had sprung up inside him. He continued to stare into his wine and realized he had been looking, like the idiot he was, at the empty bottom of his glass for over a minute. He reached over for the pitcher of wine and stopped when someone slid the beaker away. He looked up and opened his mouth to protest, but fell silent when he met the gaze of his intercepter.

"You ought to ease up a bit there, no?" Kurooma smiled at him, her eyes twinkling. "I don't think Kafei has truly won over your little sand-hair's heart yet."

He started as Kurooma called Link his. _His_. "What? You are obvious - no? I am not stupid Dark One; I see how you look at him. We Gerudo do not judge those who prefer partners of the same sex. It is entirely up to the individual to choose with whom to praise Din and the Mother through their lovemaking."

He choked on his wine at the mention of lovemaking. Yes. He wanted to. And he knew _exactly_who he would choose to do it with. Stifiling that train of thought, he glanced over at Kurooma and asked, "Weren't you flirting with me earlier? Why would you.. if you knew I was ... well.."

The Gerudo woman laughed, her olive toned skin crinkling around her dark eyes as she laughed. "That was a show for my lover. She has often shown a jealous streak and I find I like to enrage her possessiveness. It makes the sex that much better," She laughed and elbowed Dark as he coughed once again at the mention of sex.

"You really need to get laid, kid." A low, dry voice by his ear said, and he jumped again (he really was getting too relaxed out here). Another Gerudo woman sat beside him, and Kurooma immediately sidled closer to the woman, who draped a possessive arm over Kurooma's waist.

"Nabooru," Kurooma breathed into the woman's neck as the Gerudo took a long drink of the spiced wine from Kurooma's cup. Nabooru turned when she had set down her drink and passionately kissed her lover, running thin fingers through the red haired woman's tangled and braided locks.

"Welcome to the Club, kid," Nabooru said to Dark, once she'd broken the kiss and leaned back to observe the circle of Gerudo and other visitors eating and drinking. "I'm Nabooru, the old boss of the Gerudo. I'm a lone wolf now, I just come back to be with Kuro here." She stroked the woman's arm with a jewelled hand.

"I'm Dark." Seriously, was everyone around here gay? Or was it just him not looking closely enough? Whatever, it made him more comfortable with staring shamelessly at Link.

"Yeah, I know. Link told me," She grinned then, revealing a wolfish looking face that he found irresistable to dislike and smiled back at. "So you've got it pretty bad for him then eh?"

Dark sighed, knowing that this woman would get to hear what she wanted, no matter what excuses he put out. "Yes, alright? I want him so bad I have to run away in the mornings just to deal with the... backlash from the ammount of sex appeal he puts out. I'm going crazy. If I don't fuck him soon..." He lowered his voice, seeing Kurooma look around her subtly as Nabooru hummed quietly. The thief sighed before she dug into a pouch at the belt of her pants.

"Here." She handed him a small green vial, watching as he took it.

"What is it?" He asked, holding it like a small snake about to bite.

"An aphrodisiac. Also a lubricant. Use it wisely. Who knows? Maybe you won't need it. Maybe Kafei will," Nabooru said, eyes sliding to land on Kafei and Link. Kafei was sitting half leaning against Link, whispering closely in his ear. Link, who looked partially drunk, was also leaning into him, listening intently. Kafei's lips moved slowly and his eyes glittered in the fire, fixed on the blond's face.

Dark clenched his hand around the vial, feeling it bite into his flesh. Link was his. And he didn't need an aphrodisiac to tell him that.

He stood, intending to storm over and rip Link away from the purple haired dog slobbering over him, but was stopped by Nabooru calling to him. "Dark... we have an idea..." He turned and smiled when he saw both Nabooru and Kurooma grinning like wolves at him, winking sparkling, seductive dark eyes.

--

Link turned suddenly, startled as was the rest of the camp into silence by the first notes of a flute, drifting through the desert wind. The focus in the gathering quickly drew to a woman who rose from a crouch by the fire, her long, fiery hair unbound and tousled around her bare shoulders. She stamped her feet as she twirled around the fire, letting the flame lick along the sensuous lines of her body. She gestured, and the flames flashed, and by the time everyone's vision had cleared, she had a partner; a beautiful, muscled, dark skinned male.

It was Dark, Link realized with a pang that was part shock and part something he would rather not diagnose. He was nude apart from low slung desert pants that were loose and yet clung to his every curve with sinful accuracy as to what lay underneath. He began to dance with the red haired woman, and Link instantly felt a deep hatred for the woman as she twined her body around Dark's.

Another flute joined the first and from the darkness, another woman stepped forward as Dark leaned back, letting his head fall into her bare breasts. Link stared at the runes painted all over the woman's body, everywhere apart from the small loincloth she wore was painted with what was obviously praises to the Mother and Din. She leaned forward, caressing Dark's neck as he raised himself up, his hips turning a slow circle and drawing both women toward him.

The first woman was now nude as well, and she pressed herself close to him every time he leaned back. When he leaned forward, the second woman was there, her lips caressing his as she ran her hands down his arms. Every empty space he left, the two women filled.

Link discovered that his fists were clenching his robes so hard the fabric was ready to tear. Uncaring of the reactions of the others around him, he stood up, his gaze fixed on Dark's, who looked back at him, gesturing with a hand that was twined with two other arms. Beckoning.

"Come to me," Dark mouthed, his gaze heated as he danced. Link shook his head, covering his blue eyes as he felt tears beginning to slide from them.

Tears? He was _crying_? Cursing himself, his emotions, his body for longing to join Dark and tear him away from the women who danced around him, he clenched his teeth and looked away, his bangs hiding his face as the tears began to fall undeterred down his face.

Unable to remain as he was, Link ran from the fire, from the music, from the dancing. From Dark.

He found Epona, grazing outside of the training grounds, her tack lying neatly underneath a woven awning, but she wouldn't let him mount her, dancing aside and gazing back at him with an unreadable expression. Furious, he turned to her companion and vaulted onto the stallion's back. Itzel skittered and then obediently galloped out of the compound under Link's guidance. He thundered past the fortress, staying as far away from the fire area as he could. He couldn't face Dark now. He couldn't face _himself_, now. He needed to be alone.

He knew. He knew why this was happening to him. He knew why he felt this way, why his heart clenched at the way the women had looked with his companion.

He was in love with Dark.

--

Dark searched for Link later that night, after all the other Gerudo had gone to sleep with their various partners. Kafei had yielded to him with little protest, assuring Dark that he would leave the man's "prize" alone.

Dark had gone to the stables to find Itzel missing, and Epona looking smugly at him. He jumped onto her back, grabbing a blanket for no apparent reason other than he was damn cold (not possessing enough brain to change out of his slinky dancing outfit), and they ran out into the desert, following the meandering path of the horse's tracks before them.

An hour later, Dark found Link in the Desert Colossus. He was impressed by Itzel's stamina, Epona was heaving as he jumped off and walked with her the rest of the way to the stones that marked what he knew to be the Spirit Temple. He saw Link, sitting alone with his pale, long legs sticking out of the slits of his Gerudo robe, on top of a boulder. His white breeches lay tangled in the sand next to his hat and boots. Itzel grazed nearby, and Epona cantered eagerly over to him. Dark saw Link take in Epona's appearance, but the Hero didn't turn to look at him.

Finding himself irritated, wanting, hungry, sad, and confused, Dark trekked across the sand and pulled himself onto the stone beside Link. Link shifted away from him a little and he gritted his teeth in frustration. The silence between them grew heavy, and Dark stole glances at Link from under his black hair, watching the way the blond's hair fluttered near his jaw as he breathed, steadily, in and out.

"Why are you here?" Link surprised him, a moment later, his voice quiet and clear in the calm air of the Colossus.

He stared, fully, now, at the Hero. Link was still staring away from him, his gaze focused on the moon, huge and beautiful, before them. "For you," Dark said. He'd decided that he had had enough of dancing around this topic. He wanted Link. He needed him. "I needed to see you." He turned himself, placing his hand so it was behind Link, allowing him to lean in close to the blond.

"You don't need me," Link mumbled, shuffling away from his shadow and leaning forward to bury his face in his knees. Dark stared at him, his hands curling into fists on the stone as Link pointedly looked away from him. He gripped Link's upper arms, turning Link so he was forced to face him. Link let out a sudden breath, surprise in his blue eyes as Dark slid his hands down Link's arms, lacing their fingers together. He was on his knees now, leaning over Link's seated form, his red eyes unreadable.

His voice rasped as he stared into Link's eyes, taking in the heat that spread across the Hero's face as he registered their closeness. Dark licked his lips, unconsciously, noting with an inward leap of joy that his counterpart's eyes followed the movement. Shifting forward, Link's legs sliding out so they were between his, his knelt so he straddled Link's hips, pressing their joined hands to the stone by the blond's head as he leaned closer, lowering himself until he knew Link could feel how hard he was. Dark pressed himself against the blond's body with desperation.

"No. I do need you. You can't even begin to realize how much you mean to me. . .So. . . much more than you know." He lowered his face until it was next to Link's, his warm breath stirring the flaxen hair over Link's ears as he laughed at himself. "I almost killed that idiot boy earlier when he practically licked your neck." His grip around Link's hands tightened, and he lifted his head, lifting his eyes to lock gazes with the blue-eyed male, letting his passion, his desperation, his need, and his jealousy bleed into his gaze as he whispered, shame in his voice: "I go crazy whenever anyone touches you. I panic, every time we're in a temple, and you vanish off to Nayru-knows-where without telling me. Every monster that has ever dared to lay its hands on you, I have dreamed of killing with my bare hands." Feeling fear and awe emanate from the form beneath him, he loosened his grip, stroking his thumbs across the backs of Link's hands. "I need you so much it hurts. I need to be near you. I _need_ you. I... love you." He clenched Link's hands as he said it again, his voice firm. "I love you, Link."

Link stared up at Dark, his lips parted as Dark traced Link's pulse under his thumb as he watched Link's face. His veil of self-pity and jealousy had been effectively shredded at the passionate confession his shadow offered to him. Without a single doubt, Dark was telling the truth. His red eyes begged Link to let him have a chance, to let Dark love him, to be _his_. Embracing his surge of emotions, he licked his lips, tentatively shifting beneath Dark, their hips rubbing together. Dark's eyes became swirling pits of fire as he stared down at Link, his lips parted and his eyes blazing.

"If you do that again, I won't be able to restrain myself. I won't even try. _I will take you._ I will make you _mine_. Even if you scream for me to stop. I won't." Dark whispered, his grip tightening on Link's wrists, echoing his promise.

Uncaring, wanting every word Dark spoke to come true, Link stretched up and pressed his lips against Dark's cool, parted ones. Their first kiss. He was trembling, blushing to the tips of his pointed ears, and felt utterly useless as he chastely kissed his shadow. He would not let his pride fade enough to let the man know this was his first kiss.

Dark let go of Link's wrists and cupped the blond's face between his hands, kissing him back, tracing the curve of the Hero's bottom lip with his tongue. Link responded slowly- giving Dark another pang of triumph that he had stolen the Hero's first kiss- and returned the kiss, as Dark inwardly begged him to, by opening his mouth and, shyly at first, meeting Dark's tongue with his own.

He was kissing Link. The realization made him wild with passion and he let his weight drag him to the stone, rubbing their chests together as he caressed Link's sides. Link broke the kiss a minute later, gasping for air, his lips bruised and wet. Dark clutched at Link, wrapping his arms around the Hero, whispering his name over and over as he kissed the blond's neck, then stopped. Link felt his heart pounding and could feel Dark's pulse thrumming against him as well, betraying his calm face. His shadow looked down at him and tenderly drew his fingers over the blond's lips, shuddering as Link coyly caressed his fingers with tongue and lips. Link went to push himself up again, be closer to Dark, but the man pushed him back down, gazing down at him while breathing heavily.

"Not here," he whispered. His arousal at seeing Link passionate and desperate to share himself with Dark was too much for him to bear, and he wanted to make Link's first time memorable. Forcing his lust-clouded mind to choose the chivalrous route, he drew back from the blond. Link stared up at him, dazed at the loss of contact, but only for a moment, as Dark slid his arms under Link's body, lifting him from the stone. Sliding down with surprising dexterity, he strode across the sand, carrying Link like a bride into the Spirit Temple. He grabbed the blanket from Epona's back as he passed her, ignoring her crow of triumph as he hurried away. As he felt Link's heat in his arms, he knew that he would indeed not be able to stop. His body told was already telling him in no uncertain terms how much it wanted this.

Link realized what was happening once Dark laid him on the blanket he'd spread out for them on the intricately designed floor. He knew that Dark wanted him, in the same way that he wanted Dark. He knew that Dark was going to fuck him senseless. His mind absorbed all of this and with a smile at the loss of his modesty, he realized that he didn't care- because he wanted it too.

Dark sat Link up, his dark skinned hands tracing the blond's form beneath the linen. Slowly, he drew off the Gerudo robe over the blond's head and stared in appreciation at the toned, pale skinned form that was revealed. He leaned forward, cupping Link's face as he kissed him, lips sliding down across his jaw, to his throat, finally to the bare skin the shirt had left behind. Making a pillow out of the discarded robe, Dark placed it under Link's head as he slid down the man's body, kissing the beautiful, pale skin he was presented with. He stopped when he reached Link's loincloth, his fingers curling around the band at the Hero's beautiful, slender hips. Link pressed his hands over Dark's, stopping him. Dark looked up, surprised, before he understood.

"Dark," Link whispered, fear in his eyes. "Dark, I'm... I've never done this before. Please... Be gentle.... Go slow..."

Dark nodded, the love in his eyes scaring Link even more than the way he tenderly stripped him naked. The raven-haired male kissed the tops of Link's hips as he drew the last barrier between them down and off of the blond's legs. Pulling back, he stared at Link's body, his red eyes clouding with passion. He took in everything, the scars from fights with monsters too strong for a child to fight, the thin chest and waist, the slender hips, the tentative flush-skinned erection, long legs, blond hair that fell to his chest after he'd removed his green hat, and finally, his eyes. His beautiful, swirling blue eyes that begged him to be gentle, that ordered him not to stop, the screamed the love the Hero felt for him louder than his voice ever could.

"I love you so much," Dark whispered, breaking their reverie as he slid a hand between them to rest on Link's inner thigh, his slender fingers gently kneading the pale flesh there.

He felt the blond tense beneath him and he whispered again, "relax." Link nodded, but jumped anyway when Dark slid his large hands over his erection, cupping him. Heat spread throughout his entire body as Dark stroked him, his red gaze following the motions of his hands as he rubbed Link. Suddenly, he felt bare, too exposed. Inspiration hit him and he decided that he wanted to see Dark as well, to make his body believe that this was alright.

"Dark," he said, lifting the man's chin with a hand. Dark stared at him, leaning forward to kiss him as Link said, "I want to see you too. Please. Let me...do something for you as well."

Dark nodded, letting Link sit up. He lay back as Link timidly pressed him down, gaining confidence at the look of lust that clouded Dark's eyes as he did so. Carefully, he unwound the sash around Dark's hips, brushing the pads of his fingers again and again over the beautiful curve of Dark's muscles that narrowed to a V beneath the thin fabric. Finally, he began to nervously tug down Dark's pants. Dark helped by kicking off the clothes, taking Link in his arms as he watched Link stare down at his endowment.

He was huge. Not massive, but big enough. There was no way that Dark was going to fit inside him. Sensing the train of Link's thoughts, Dark kissed him, whispering in his ear. "Yes, I will."

The thought of what Dark would do to make all of his impressive length fit inside Link was enough to make his cheeks turn bright red and he turned away from Dark and brought his knees up to his chin, all of his confidence evaporating. He let out a low groan as Dark ran his hands over his thighs, refusing to let the heat between them die, dipping between his legs to twine long fingers around his cock and press against his abdomen. Dark gently turned Link so he was facing him again and kissed him as he bore the blond down beneath him, gently parting Link's thighs with his hips as he lay them down together.

Link flinched as he felt Dark's erection press against his entrance, the seemingly vast head sending chills to his stomach, which tightened in fear. He relaxed as Dark kissed him again his hands winding around his waist. "I will not hurt you," Dark promised, sliding down Link's body, ignoring Link's whimpered protest at what he instinctively knew came next.

Link knew that Dark was staring at him and he felt inadequate after seeing Dark's own member. He tried to shield himself by clenching his knees together in front of Dark. The shadow leaned forward, kissing his shins and sliding his hand around to the backs of his knees, letting his hands descend to cup Link's firm bottom. Link blushed as Dark squeezed him, red eyes passionate on his face as his hands danced over his ass. "Don't," Dark whispered. "You're beautiful." He leaned forward and Link let him push his legs apart this time. He watched, red-faced through half-closed eyes as Dark did something that made him blush even harder. He leaned forward and kissed the tip of Link's cock, letting his tongue dart out and swirl around the smooth, hot skin as he let his hands continue to explore Link's body. The tip of the shadow's tongue pressed into the opening at his tip and he gasped, his stomach tightening at the onslaught of sensations.

Gradually, as his confidence in his abilities and Link's trust in him grew, Dark took more of Link's penis into his mouth, swallowing around the sensitive skin, running his tongue over the thick vein on the underside of Link's cock. Link gasped when Dark reached further back, lifting aside his balls to run hot fingers over the gaping entrance below.

"Ah.. Dark..." Dark had begun to push a finger inside, his excitement getting ahead of him as he realized that Link was in pain. Fumbling and realizing that he'd left the lube Nabooru had slipped him at the camp fire, he almost cursed himself- and spotted an innocent looking green vial standing upright on a pristine white pillow a few feet away. _Damn Gerudo_, he thought to himself, blushing at the idea of the desert women seeing him naked, and becoming jealous at the thought of having to share the sight of these particular expressions of Link's with anyone else.

Deciding to put aside Nabooru's voyeur activities for the moment, he slid the pillow underneath Link's hips, giving him better access to the area he wanted. He unscrewed the cap of the twinkling vial and let some of the thick, runny fluid trickle down over his fingers. He looked up to see Link watching him with a vague interest mixed with fear. He smiled at the hero and kissed the inside of his thigh, trailing his lubricated fingers over Link's erection and moving to circle the entrance beneath. For a few minutes, he simply continued to acquaint Link with the idea of having someone touching and playing with his anus. After he was sure the blond had sufficiently acclimatized to the feeling, he lathered his fingers with more of the ointment before deftly slipping one slender digit inside.

Link didn't react apart from groaning and spreading his legs wider, lifting his knees to give Dark better access. Smiling, encouraged, Dark thrust the single finger in and out of Link's anus, feeling the tight passage relax around him as he stroked the blond's insides. A minute later, he added a second finger, and halted when Link's face creased for a moment with pain. His other hand firmly wrapped around Link's erection, gently pumping him in time to the slow thrusts of his fingers. Link relaxed, finally, five minutes later. His body appeared to be coping well with two fingers, and Dark didn't feel like his own girth could be matched with two fingers alone, so he pushed a third finger into the panting blond.

Link cried out, scrunching his eyes closed and flexing his hands on the blanket beneath him, pain marring the beautiful expression of pleasure on his face. Dark leaned forward and licked along Link's shaft, trying to get him to focus on something other than the intense sensation of his ass being stretched wide. Link rolled his hips, back and away from Dark's fingers, attempting to dislodge them. Dark, his patience slowly waning, gripped Link's hips with one hand as he pushed his fingers back inside the blond, spreading them apart when he had buried them completely. Link cried out, his hands pushing at Dark's. He tried to move his hips away from the intruding fingers but they moved with him, their rhythm undisturbed as they scissored apart inside him. "Stop, Dark, please... it hurts... it hurts...ah.. No....!!!" Dark twisted his fingers inside of Link, moving his other hand to grip the blond's chin as their eyes met.

"No. I won't stop. I told you I wouldn't, and I won't." Dark said, his voice sounding harsh even to himself. Placing his lips next to Link's ear as he kissed the Hero's neck, he whispered, much gentler this time, "bear it, Link. It _will_ get better."

Link continued to cry out a while longer before his shouts trailed off as Dark continued to thrust his fingers in and out, his protests suddenly morphing into surprised groans as Dark brushed something inside of him that sent tingly sparks of lust up his spine. "Do.. that... again," he panted, surprising both of them at the wanton tone in his voice.

Dark grinned behind his bangs and crooked his fingers over the small bundle of nerves he'd hit and watched as Link's body twisted in pleasure beneath him. Now that the blond was enjoying this, his ass had loosened enough to begin hungrily sucking in Dark's fingers. Feeling this moment as perfect for their coupling, Dark crawled forward, placing his hands on either side of Link's head as he lowered his hips to Link's. Link stared up at him, his pale, flushed skin shining with sweat.

Slowly, excruciatingly slowly, Dark entered Link, the tiny entrance stretching beautifully around the thick head of his erection. After the head was in, Dark slid the rest of the way in, excruciatingly slowly, closing his eyes in rapture as Link's ass clenched around him, holding him in place with a delightfully warm passage. Link immediately gripped Dark's forearms, crying out "don't move" as he struggled to keep his hips still. He had never felt like this- stuffed full and stretched with such an intense heat he felt as if his entire lower half would burn off. After a minute of waiting, Dark pulled back and gently pressed himself back inside, bearing down with his weight as he pushed in deeper than before, watching Link's face.

Link cried out again, digging his nails into Dark's skin, to which he responded with pleased growls. Deciding to curse his common sense and let himself roast in the heat Dark was spreading throughout him, he let his legs drape over Dark's shoulders as his shadow pulled out and thrust back in, harder, faster, their flesh making a heady sliding sound against one another. Dark gripped Link's calves as he thrust down into his lover, feeling the responding scream and clenching around him and deeming it a more than satisfactory response.

Link was in ecstasy. His ass hurt still, but with Dark's heat filling him and grinding into his prostate, he could barely feel any of the pain. Instead, he called out to his lover, letting him know in no uncertain terms how much he enjoyed the torture Dark was putting him through.

Dark continued to thrust into Link, but he wasn't feeling the same intensity anymore from the repeated strokes against his prostate, and said so. Although, it was worded somewhat more _lewdly_ than that.

"Ah... Dark... please!" He screamed as Dark bit his throat, tongue scraping across the veins there as he sucked deeply, leaving huge, purpling bruises behind.

"Please.. what?" Dark managed, between succulent pops as he released the blond's flesh, gazing in satisfaction at the marks he'd left.

"I want to come," Link blurted out, trying to force his hips closer against Dark's.

Dark stared at his lover, in disbelief at his luck. _I really, really love you Link. _Sucking in a breath, he smiled and pulled out of the Hero, hiding his smirk at the blond's cry of loss. He turned them over, so Link hovered over his thighs and he lay back, letting his hands rest on Link's hips as he stared up at his lover. "Then... ride me."

"What? ..How.. I don't..." Link stared uncertainly at Dark's member, erect and waiting, before him his eyes darting between his shadow's arousal and his clouded, red eyes. Hiding another smirk at how much of a virgin Link really was, Dark pulled Link's hips forward so they were in line with his cock, and gently, firmly, impaled the blond on his shaft.

Link screamed, Dark's cock pressing insistingly against his prostate as he sunk onto the shadow's impressive length. "Ah..no!" He cried, as Dark rocked his hips upward, thrusting deeper still. His protest faded as he began to moan and cry out as Dark began a fast and demanding rhythm. A minute later, he felt his body take over, his hips pushing down against Dark's upward motions, his body instinctively accepting Dark inside him and mirroring the shadow's movements.

Dark felt his orgasm drawing near, dangerously near, and reached forward to grip the blond's dripping erection. Link cried out, his flesh over-sensitive to touch as Dark pumped him in time to his thrusts. Panting, he leaned forward, letting his arms wrap around Dark's back and clutch at his skin, raking his nails down the man's back. Remembering the marks on his own neck, he latched onto the skin of the black-haired male's throat and hummed happily at the approving growl he received in return.

As Dark continued to push them toward their peak, he struggled to contain his cries as Link bit and sucked at his throat, no doubt leaving a massive hickey that would turn a rainbow of colors before fading any time soon.

Minutes later, what felt like hours to the pair, Link screamed out his orgasm, his body jerking spasmodically against Dark's as he came. Dark groaned, clenching his teeth and pushing Link onto his back, holding out for several, hard, final thrusts as he pushed the Hero's legs over his shoulders and pushed as deep as their bodies allowed. A second later, he gave a shuddering cry as he emptied himself inside of the blond, his grip loosening around the blond's thighs as he slumped, kissing Link's chest as he panted.

Link lay, flat on his back, completely exhausted. His body was throbbing with leftover passion and something he knew would hurt like hell in the morning, but could not be bothered to care about. He tried to turn Dark so he lay next to him, but stopped and closed his eyes as he realized his shadow was still inside him, his slowly softening length connecting them as they lay, worn out, together.

Finally, Dark pulled out and rolled over, cradling Link's head against his chest as he combed through the blond's sweaty hair with gentle fingers. "I love you, Link, " he whispered again, kissing the Hero's forehead.

Link, struggling, with the last of his strength, pushed himself to his elbows and kissed Dark, their lips moving slowly together as he whispered back, "I love you too. I love you, Dark."

They fell asleep like that, their bodies intertwined and sweaty, on the floor of the Spirit Temple.

Needless to say, when Dark awoke, early the next morning with Link in their bed back at the Gerudo fortress and dressed in light night-clothes, he was instantly wide awake. He knew Link would die of embarrassment when he realized how they'd gotten back. Deciding to fix the problem before Link became stressed about it, he hunted Nabooru down inside of the training compound and beat her ass thoroughly into the sand, much to Kurooma and Nabooru's amusement. As he helped the woman to her feet, she wiped her mouth and spat blood to the side, grinning at him; he muttered under his breath, avoiding the sly grins of the other Gerudo (he was shirtless, and his body displayed every single one of Link's possessive marks to the world). Loudly, deciding that he had no reason to be embarrassed, he thanked Nabooru for her "wonderful use of thieving and spying skills to allow her friends to enjoy a pleasurable night full of hot, wild sex."

Smiling at Nabooru's nonchalant response and the grins of the other Gerudo (and ignoring the shocked looks of some of the visitors) he marched back to their rooms, stripped off his clothes, and cuddled back up to Link.

He was, after all, thoroughly exhausted.

----

-------

----

That had been two weeks ago, and he had been sitting around the Desert Colossus for one of those weeks, panic eating away at him as he thought of Link, as a child, for once on his own as he made his way through the Spirit Temple's smaller sections. When the Hero had returned to the Temple of Time, Dark felt something inside of him return, like he really was Link's shadow, and could feel his return. Moments later, Link appeared in a swirl of orange light and sparks, Navi flying to bury herself in Dark's hair and whisper a soft hello, before scrambling to get ouf of the way as Link collapsed in Dark's arms, face occupying Navi's previous position. That night, they had returned to the Gerudo Fortress - Link seemed shaken at the idea of sleeping in the temple he now had to complete- and spent a relaxed evening with Nabooru and Kurooma, attempting to learn (ironically) a partnership dance that symbolized marriage and prosperity between a couple from the Gerudo women. After having finally learned and completed the moves, Nabooru once again handed Dark that same bottle of green oil and winked lasciviously at them. Link blushed and Kurooma scolded her lover as Dark tried to restrain his glare. They were infinitely glad they were in a section almost by themselves in the fortress, as they made copious amounts of noise that night as they fully reunited themselves. And after that night, Link had enforced a ban on their sexual activities, claiming he needed his full concentration for this last temple. Annoyed and sexually unfulfilled, Dark took to following Link in shadow form rather than his usual physical form through the temples. An attempt to return the denying situation that Link had forced him into. If he couldn't have Link at night, then Link wouldn't be able to have comfort in him during the day. It was their first real disagreement, and it sat sourly in Dark's throat as he followed the blond through the depths of the temple.

Pulling himself out of his memories, Dark realized that he had fallen behind Link, once again- the Hero always managed to lose him at _least_ once during the course of each temple.

He cursed as he flitted through the temple, eventually catching sign of Link's passage at the corpses of strange dinosaur-like monsters. He slid down a set of chains to a platform, and used his own version of the Longshot to pull himself over to the -_melted_? he thought in wry amusement-face of the statue. He ran through the door and stopped, calling on his remnant magic from Ganondorf and molding his body into the shadows, remaining unseen as he watched two strange looking witches banter back and forth with one another and Link. He recognized the creature they awoke before they disappeared, and had to fight down the urge to stop Link from entering into combat with it. Every other _intelligent_ part of himself screamed to let the Hero handle his fight without interference.

Forcing himself to wait in the darkness, he gritted his teeth and watched in silence, tense fear gripping him as Link faced down the Iron Knuckle. It strode toward Link, its intent stare focused on the Hero as it marched inexorably forward.

Link dodged a tremendous swing of the creature's axe, deftly slipping beneath its guard and cutting off part of its breastplate to score the darkness that lay beneath. The creature, after several more of these lancing blows and the jumping retreats, dropped its outer plates of armour, and without a second's warning, plunged its axe into Link's collarbone. Dark hissed fiercely, coming to a crouched position, ready to lunge forward. Link's face turned white and his breath exploded from him as his knees shook beneath the force of the iron Knuckle's blow. The metal monster tore its axe free from Link, but not before gripping the Hero by the throat and tossing him, like a broken doll, into one of the stone pillars that lined the room.

Dark found inaction no longer an option, and materialized from the shadows, his face an ugly snarl. His eyes were tender as he glanced at Link, bloody and dazed, lying in the rubble of the column. He drew his sword, a shadow opposite of Link's own, and closed his eyes, listening to the confused grunt of the Knuckle as it faced two opponents. Apparently, Ganondorf hadn't found the idea of giving the creature more brains than singular combat required to be useless. The man who had come from the shadow used this to his advantage, using the split second before the creature drew its axe back into a killing blow meant for Link; he lunged forward, rolled beneath the creature's guard, and plunged his blade into the monster's chest. The axe dropped from the creature's suddenly weakened fingers, and the red eyes from beneath the helmet looked at the man, at the injured man's shadow, and saw another creation of Ganondorf. It grunted, gesturing wildly, for help, at Dark Link.

Without a second's hesitation, his eyes, ruby red, met the creature's, and he tore the monster's head from its body. Blue fire consumed its remains as Dark Link rushed to Link's side. The Hero was struggling to free himself from beneath a particularly heavy piece of rubble, and having no luck at all. Dark gripped a piece of sandstone column and threw it across the room, adrenaline lending him strength.

"I told you I don't need help, Dark," Link snarled, ignoring the panic in his counterpart's red eyes. He attempted to push away Dark's helping hands but relented as a fresh wave of blood entered the deep cut on his shoulder and neck, causing the blood to burst forth in a tidal wave of red. Dark's panic grew more evident as the rubble crashed against the opposite wall, and he dragged Link's now compliant body from the remaining pile. "Put me down," Link protested, his voice weak against Dark's chest.

"Be quiet," he hissed, clenching Link tighter to his chest as he pulled out a black ocarina, balancing Link on the former Iron Knuckle's throne as he piped out a fast melody.

"Dark, I'm fine," Link protested, feebly trying to push his hands away from the ocarina as Dark played. Their eyes met and Link scowled as Dark Link hoisted him up into his arms once more as a blue light surrounded them, a tired looking Navi flying around them in an ascending circle. His scowl vanished when Dark shifted him in his arms, and pain shrieked through his body. His eyes fluttered as their surroundings blurred and the Spirit Temple dimmed before them. Link stared, growing delirious as he watched the images before his eyes, swirling, becoming a beautiful, blue lake, a tall tree shading him from the bright, setting sun. His eyes slipped closed as he heard Dark whispering something, how he would return quickly, something else... his hearing was fading in and out. A splash. Silence.

It was deafening. He could hear the fading beats of his heart, the slowing rush of the blood in his veins. The sound of his heart pounding rolled through his head, growing steadily slower with each passing minute. Link realized with panic that he was dying, bleeding out. He tried to move, to roll over, anything! his limbs refused to respond, to move, to feel. Lead weights had embedded themselves into his very bones and he knew they were getting heavier with every second.

The sky darkened considerably, terrifying him because Link knew that it was still day, the sun still shone above his eyes. It was him; it was his own eyes that darkened, that were beginning to cloud with the onset of death.

"Dark," he choked out, blood sliding from his lips, cracked from the heat of the desert. His breath wheezed in and out, coughs racking his throat as he felt blood spatter inside his mouth from something that had ruptured below. He heard a tremendous splash a moment later, and Dark's heavy panting reached his ears as his eyes slipped shut. He felt water patter slowly against his blood-stained tunic as Dark leaned over him, hands clasping his leaden form.

"Damnit Link open your eyes…. Don't….die… drink…. Potion…" Dark's words fading in and out of his ears, he was vaguely aware of swallowing a red tinted liquid, of Dark's hands smoothing his throat, examining his wound, cursing him, pleading with him.

Darkness blissfully wrapped him up, and he smiled at Dark's relieved sigh before passing out, giving into the exhaustion that plagued him.

----

When he woke up, he was inside. In a room. He looked around, examining the walls; obviously they were back in the Gerudo fortress, because he knew the look of the stone walls better than he did his own home back in the distant Kokiri Forest. He realized with a split feeling of derision and amusement that he and Dark spent all together too much time here.

Suddenlym he was distinctly aware that he was tied down to something soft. He was also aware that his tunic and belt were gone, as were his sword, shield, and boots. Even his familiar hat was gone. A moment of panic passed over him until he heard a low, familiar voice say, "Welcome back, idiot."

"I could've handled it," he said, closing his eyes. He yelped as the bed dipped and he felt Dark, large hands wrapped around his wrists, hips pressing against his own, settle on top of him.

"Really," Dark questioned, his cool breath caressing Link's chest. He fought a shiver as Dark leaned down, licking his neck with a too-dexterous tongue, blowing on the wet path he left. Link shivered, unable to fight the urge as Dark kept on with his downward path.

Dark smirked, aware of the effect his ministrations were having upon his lover. "Yes!" Link spat, his blue eyes sparking as he fought his body's urge to offer itself up to his shadow. Link glared up at Dark, fists clenched, balled up and gripping the linen sheets beneath him. Dark smiled, widely, showing his pointed teeth as he delicately ground his hips into Link's own, red eyes scanning the flushed face beneath him as Link groaned. "Dark, get off."

"No." He reached between them, fingers drawing intricate patterns over the Hylian's slender waist, drawing down toward the hem of his breeches. "Dark!" He chuckled, sliding down Link's body and pressing a kiss to the firm muscles beneath Link's skin, below his navel. He listened, eyes closed, in joy, to Link's repressed groans as he delicately nipped the Hero's hips, licked the dips between his hips, reached lower and pressed in with his hand.

"Dark!" Link thrashed, giving up his pride as his lust overtook him. He had put Dark under a temporary ban of Abstinence during his stay at the Spirit Temple, and he knew that his spurned lover was going to make him pay for that, exquisitely. "Please," he begged, his voice a low whine, as Dark continued to lightly caress between his legs, over the fabric of his too-tight breeches.

"Please, what?" Dark said, and Link blushed at the obvious smirk in his shadow's voice. He mumbled his response and cried out when Dark cupped him, pushing his legs over his shoulders to gain access to even lower regions. "Sorry, love, I didn't quite hear that last part."

Link, shaking with need, tried to form coherent words as he felt Dark tracing the outline of his erection. The gentle touches disappeared and he nearly groaned at the loss. "You'll have to tell me what you want, or else I'll leave you he-"

Dark had come up from his position between Link's legs to say this to him, and was silenced as Link pressed a frantic kiss to his lips. He grinned and thrust his tongue inside his lover's mouth, cheering inwardly at the utter surrender he had evoked within the "untouchable" Hero of Time. With a feeling of regret, he pushed Link back down to the bed, enjoying the hazy-eyed look Link stared back at him with. "Dark," he whimpered, and suddenly, he felt that Link's breeches were completely in the way of current needs.

Link felt his feet being cut loose from the bonds Dark had placed on them, and relaxed before gasping as Dark ripped off his white breeches in one pull. "Ah, Dark, don't…" Link pressed his knees together, surprising shyness once more overtaking his obvious lust. He stared at the beautiful, oh-so-fuckable image beneath him, taking several deep breaths to steady his hands as they flexed on the other man's body before leaning down, his body finding the weakness in Link's tentative barrier of closed legs as they opened and welcomed him into their embrace. He settled between Link's thighs, but not so close as to allow the Hero gratification from the burning heat that consumed him. He lifted Link's legs, hooking them over his thighs. He undid the chain that held Link's bound hands to the bed's headboard, and Link slipped his hands over Dark's head to rest around his neck. Dark smiled, his arms twining around his lover as his hands trailed down the hero's back.

"Dark!" Link gasped as he felt the man's fingers ghost over his entrance, gently caressing the puckering hole with heated strokes, never pressing deep enough however. He writhed in Dark's embrace, panting, needing more contact. "Be good," Dark said, burying his teeth in the newly-healed scar on Link's neck. Link cried out, feeling the jump of surprise being reflected by the twitch his enlarged manhood gave at the attention. Dark withdrew his teeth carefully, laving the abused skin with a hot tongue, then moving up, breathing in his ear before claiming another patch of skin on Link's neck as his own, worrying the tender flesh between his dexterous tongue and sharp teeth. A moment later, when he'd created a purple and red bruise large enough to satisfy himself, Dark gave Link's trembling neck one final, gentle kiss before pulling back and locking his eyes with the glazed blue ones before him.

Link stilled as he watched Dark unlace his black shirt, letting it fall loosely around his neck. Link pulled, and Dark relented, letting the Hero pull the shirt over his head. Link tossed the shirt aside; his body was throbbing too much to ignore now and he gave up his pretence of not wanting to touch his lover and pressed heated kisses to Dark's neck, his body trembling with excitement as he felt Dark's corresponding lust beneath him harden and press against him.

Dark growled, enjoying the attention, but he didn't want things to go exactly as Link intended. He wanted Link spread before him, vulnerable and begging, open and crying out for more. He wanted Link bare and flushed; Dark wanted Link to know that he was utterly _his_and his alone. With that thought as inspiration, he lunged forward, throwing Link onto his back, letting the Hero's legs fall open before him. He slid his hands over Link's slender legs, watching with narrowed eyes the repressed twitching the man's skin was going through. Stopping his meandering hands' path at Link's hips, he lazily drew a triforce, as if in offering to the Goddesses for defiling their precious hero's body. He drew the pattern around Link's engorged cock, licking his lips as he watched several crystal drops forming at the tip of the appendage. Dark finished the drawing, then leaned forward and delicately nipped all three points of the triangle he'd traced on Link's skin. His hair formed a little curtain of black around Link's hips as he leaned over them and he tossed it carelessly over his shoulder, feeling Link's longing gaze on him as he watched the man's hands fight to stay away from his hair. He knew how much Link loved the way his hair felt and looked, tangled in his hands.

He caught Link's eyes as he straightened, lifting himself over Link's body. Out of instinct, the male beneath him pressed against the hard torso in front of him with his bound hands, attempting to push him away. Dark growled again, grabbed Link's bound hands and forced them over his head with one hand, holding them there as he wrapped the chain once more around Link's hands. He fought a sadistic grin as Link whimpered, pulling against the headboard; the Hero hated being tied down and restrained more than anything else in the world. Dark sat up, watching the man for a moment as Link opened his eyes, staring up at him. Dark's hungry gaze ran over Link's body; the splayed open legs, the trembling, dripping erection, the hardened nipples, the ravaged neck, the panting, open mouth, and lastly, those beautiful sky blue eyes, filled with tears and yet clouded with desire.

"I think if I leave you here, this would be enough punishment for the carelessness you've shown lately," Dark began, watching Link's shocked stare from the corner of his eyes as he ran sharp-nailed fingers over the man's shin. "However," he continued his voice a low, husky growl, "I think fucking you until you can't scream will be more..._suitable_." Link closed his legs, but was stopped as Dark gripped his inner thighs, forcing them apart. "I promise you," he leaned forward; mouth an inch from Link's, tongue darting out to wet his lips, "I'm not going anywhere until I have you screaming beneath me." He echoed that vow as he ground his hips into Link's own, showing the Hero how much he wanted what he spoke of. Link stretched upward, frantically trying to meet Dark's mouth. Dark evaded him and grinned at the lost whimper that escaped Link.

Dark slid down Link's body, listening to the low groans that continued to grace his ears. He lowered his mouth to the hero's erection, tongue darting out to caress the organ. Link trembled, gripping the sheets beneath him as Dark took more of him into his mouth, sucking on Link's shaft. "Please, oh yes, Dark…" A constant mantra of encouraging groans and words slipped out of Link as Dark's mouth brought him to the edge. Just as his stomach tightened, heat coiling, ready to spring; Dark released him, licking his lips as he sat back up.

He looked down his body at Dark and shuddered as Dark used his tongue, wet from Link's generous fluids, to wet his fingers. Dark kissed Link's inner thigh, scraping fangs over sensitive flesh. Link stilled, wincing as Dark slipped a finger past the tight ring of muscles, then relaxed around the intrusion as Dark stroked his insides. He groaned as Dark slipped in a second finger, and his shadow began to scissor his fingers, stretching him, thrusting his fingers inside Link. Without warning, he bent his fingers in a "come to me" gesture, scraping his blunt nails against Link's most sensitive region inside; Link cried out, his hips jerking forward, then thrusting back to try and impale himself deeper on Dark's fingers.

Link gasped and groaned each time his lover thrust his long, slender fingers inside him, pressed against the spot deep within him that caused his nerves to snap and fizz with dizzying pleasure. Dark added a third finger, knowing how tight Link would be without the extra preparation, due to the length of time that had passed since they had last coupled.

Link cried out as Dark thrust three fingers inside him, and Dark stilled, remembering the promise he had made to himself; if Link was unable to comfortably take three fingers, Dark would not fuck him. He waited, watching with impatience and desperation the myriad expressions that passed over Link's face before his expression became one of content bliss.

Knowing his partner was ready, and feeling the burn within him that said he would die if he did not take Link soon, he pulled his fingers from Link, delicately running his tongue over the digits as Link watched, embarrassment flushing his beautiful face.

"I love you", Dark whispered as he settled once more between the Hylian's thighs. Link gasped, feeling the head of Dark's erection press momentarily against his entrance. Dark waited once again, until he felt Link's silent permission to proceed. Forcing himself to move slowly, he began to thrust into Link, who closed his eyes, pain and pleasure mixing on his face. He felt the opening before him stretching and pushed deeper, feeling the thick muscles around him flexing and finally surrendering to his invasion. Link cried out as Dark pulled back, leaving the head of his cock inside Link, ready to go deeper, but unable to continue without reassurance.

"Do you want me to stop?" He knew he had to ask now, before his instincts took over and he could no longer control himself. Link shook his head after an agonizing minute, his true desires showing through his broken mask of indifference. Dark felt his control slip as he heard Link whimper, "I… want… you. Inside," he moaned at the last word, tentatively pushing his hips against the ones above his own. Dark smiled even as his hands clutched at Link's hips, the last bit of restraint he had evaporating. He pulled completely out of the Hero, hesitating before plunging back in, burying himself completely in the excruciating tightness of the passage before him. He felt Link clench around him at the sudden intrusion, his body jolting up into Dark's as his mouth became a wide, gaping 'o'.

Dark cursed his abrupt move as Link felt the first tearing, piercing pains inside him and cried out, biting his lip, a single tear trailing down his face. Link thrashed against him, his bound hands clanging harshly against the headboard as he struggled against his restraints. Carefully, so as to remain motionless inside of Link, Dark leaned forward, hastily releasing his hands. The man immediately pushed against Dark, one hand on his chest, the other, flicking between the decision to grip the sheets, or attempting to dislodge Dark's hips. Not wanting to stop, not wanting to cause more pain, torn between his lust and his love, Dark gathered the Hero in his arms, lifting them so Link was sitting atop him, legs falling on either side of his hips. Dark caressed his chest and neck with small, lingering kisses, his hands gently kneading Link's ass as he waited for the Hero to adjust. The quiet sobs he heard wheezing out from Link didn't help his conscience either. _I thought I prepared him better_, he berated himself for not taking extra time to ensure his lover's comfort.

Link, meanwhile, felt like he was on fire. A fire that had grown exponentially worse when Dark had sat them up together; the motion thrust Dark deeper into him, and he had felt a slow burn around his entrance as his hips met the hilt of Dark's cock. Within him, his body screamed at the thickness of the intrusion stretching his insides. He felt so full, connected to Dark, his shadow, like this, that the contact felt more than just physical; he felt complete. The only downside to this beautiful connection was that it _hurt like hell_, and he was one second shy from telling Dark to get the _fuck_ out of him.

Two minutes later, however, after he had breathed through the worst of the pain, he felt a low throb in his stomach as Dark shifted beneath him to suck on his neck. Tentatively, not wanting to give himself another thing to wince about, he lifted himself a little off of Dark's cock, bracing his weight on the man's dark skinned shoulders. Dark paused in his ministrations, but continued a minute later as Link lowered his hips, shuddering as Dark corresponded to the movement by gently pressing his hips up into Link's.

Dark looked up at Link, reaching up with one hand to caress the smooth bones of his cheek as he kissed him, tongue and lips tangling together, before he smiled and gripped Link's hips this time as the man raised himself off of Dark once more. At the same time Link sat back down, Dark thrust up, impaling him on his length. They both cried out- Link gripping Dark, burying his face in the crook of his neck, trembling, and Dark groaning and wrapping his arms around Link's waist as he continued to thrust into the Hero.

Finding that this wasn't enough for the darker side of him- the part of him that still wanted to punish the Hero-, Dark pushed Link onto his back, where he stared up at his shadow, confusion marring the beauty of his flushed face at the absence of his lover's body. Dark slid sharp nailed hands down Link's legs, gripping his calves and lifting them over his shoulders. He leaned down, pressing Link's body close as he lined himself up to his entrance once more.

"Link," Dark said his voice guttural with restrained pleasure. The Hylian's cerulean eyes snapped open; dazed and disoriented, he met his shadow's heated gaze. Dark stared at Link, red battling blue, finally breaking the silence by driving himself back into his lover, swallowing Link's scream with his kiss.

Link couldn't breathe; Dark's pace was fast, furious, hard, the angle Dark was penetrating him from caused him to mercilessly pound into his prostate with each thrust. His mind had given up resisting, and his body showed his utter surrender by wrapping as much of himself as he could around his lover. He pulled Dark's head next to his own, wrapping his arms around his neck as he screamed his pleasure into Dark's ear. Dark bit into Link's neck, grinding his hips deeper into Link's as he gripped one of his thighs, using it as leverage. Link hooked his ankles together behind Dark's lower back, increasing the depth of the angle between them, and feeling the instant gratification it provided reflected in both of their increased moans and cries.

Dark knew that Link was his once more; his mind might have resisted, but his body was screaming out the truth plainly to him. The love his Hero showed him by surrendering to him burst inside of him, and he felt the heat within him respond to Link's cries with deep, resounding pulses as he thrust harder into him. The pace was beginning to tell on him, however; he could feel his breath raggedly gasping in and out, and felt his vision beginning to waver. He concentrated on the image below him; Link, stretched out, writhing, screaming, blue eyes rolling, blond hair a sweaty mess beneath him. Focusing on Link, he managed to release Link's thigh to grip the Hero's overlooked erection and began to stroke it in time to his thrusts.

Link felt Dark grip his shaft and screamed as his shadow matched his pace with the tight grip of his melting hands. He dug his nails into Dark's back, screaming like a wolfos as he scored marks into his lover's back, feeling, in the depths of his pleasure-fogged mind, a dark satisfaction at being able to leave a mark on his counterpart. The throbbing he'd felt before, distant with only Dark's thrusts to stimulate him, returned with a fury; Dark's pace had grown harder and deeper, his hand faster on Link's erection, his groans came faster and harder, his nerve endings curled together and snapped out again, heady, toxic pleasure filling every part of him. Link cried out, feeling his orgasm rush closer as Dark suddenly gripped his hips with both hands as he drew himself up onto his knees, pulling Link's ass up with him, and plunged deeper still.

Dark knew he was about to come, but felt it his undeniable duty to make the Hero release before he did. Taking Link's hips once more in hands that shook with need, he angled his hips to meet with the bundle of nerves he knew would end both their torture. Panting, nearly spent, Dark lunged forward again, feeling Link's grip on his shoulders tightening, his legs wrapping around his hips to pull him closer.

When Link came, half a minute later, his vision went white, stars exploding in the shape of ruby red eyes above him as he screamed out his fulfillment. He felt his seed slip between them, felt Dark's body slide against his own. Dark felt Link's muscles clench around him inside, and groaning, he wrapped his arms around Link's body, lying flat out on top of him as he came, tongue battling Link's as they shuddered together. Link groaned at the wet heat inside of him, his body continuing to throb as Dark thrust in him, his pace slowing and become a gentle rocking of their bodies. Finally, they simple lay together, utterly exhausted.

Dark rolled off of Link, remaining inside of his lover's body as he played softly with Link's tangled blond hair. Link's pants slowed gradually into deep, even breaths, his face relaxing as his body went limp within Dark's embrace. Their passion slowly faded, and Dark pulled Link half on top of him as he ran sweaty hands down his lover's pale back.

"Are you still mad?" Link asked a while later, voice muffled against Dark's chest, which was still covered in Link's seed. He licked the column of his shadow's neck, savouring the taste of sweat that lingered there on the dark coloured skin, mixed with his own essence.

A low chuckle greeted his query, and Link looked up at Dark, who glanced down at him, smirking. "Mad? No. But," his grip tightened on Link's hips again, "don't ever," he ground out, "ever- do that to me again. I almost lost you." Link barely heard the last sentence as Dark whispered against Link's hair, desperation in his voice.

"I'm sorry, Dark," he said struggling to form consecutive, understandable sentences as Dark caressed the skin of his hips. "I wanted to handle this temple on my own. I guess … I got cocky, knowing you were there, watching. I wanted to …. Prove I was strong." He winced; his words had come across as arrogant, selfish and vain.

Dark sat up, and Link had to brace himself on his elbows as he slipped off his chest. Dark sighed, pulling Link to sit on top of him once more. He delicately nipped the still-bleeding bite he'd given the Hero earlier as he hissed, "You are strong, but stupid. You didn't concentrate, Link." He gripped Link's wrists in his larger hands, lifting his knees and effectively trapping Link by forcing him to balance on top of his shadow. He glared up at Link, eyeing the scar on his collarbone. Link caught the direction of Dark's gaze and flushed, furious with himself once again. He pulled his wrists free of Dark's grip and rubbed the bruised skin, not trusting himself to meet his shadow's eyes. He yelped as Dark gripped his waist with clawed hands, sharp nails digging into his still-sensitive flesh. He swung his eyes up to meet Dark's angry, blood tinged gaze and was mortified at the liquid sheen that lay over his eyes.

"What happens when you face Ganon? Will you be able to focus then?" He cursed inwardly at the hurt look on Link's face as he hit the Hero's soft spot of fear. "Link," he started over, gripping his lover's chin and locking their eyes, "I only say this because … If you die, I don't think I will survive. I think I'll die, too, the moment I see you hurt beyond repair." He ran gentle, cool fingertips over the scar that lay on Link's shoulder, pressing a kiss to the white mark. He rested his head against Link's chest, burying his face into the sound of the Hero's steadily beating heart. "Every time something attacks you, I have to stop myself from storming in and tearing it to shreds. I have to stay my ocarina every time you fight a monster within a temple because I see it draw blood." Dark's breath hissed, in and out; Link knew he was struggling to remain calm. "Every time, every fight; my heart pounds so heard I feel like it's going to burst. In my dreams, I see you bloody and cold, and my only comfort is knowing that when I wake up, you will be there, warm and alive. I don't ever want to live in my nightmares. I don't want you to get hurt. I don't care about Hyrule. I care about you. I love you, "he said fiercely, arms wrapping around Link's body as he stared into Link's blue eyes, finally looking up at him. "I love you." Tears. Dark had tears in his eyes. His face was tight behind an emotionless mask, but his bloodshot, tear filled eyes told of the panic he felt when faced with a life without Link.

Link fought against his initial reaction of anger at Dark's insensitive comment, forcing himself to listen as Dark continued on. His hurt faded as he realized that Dark's fears were based on his love for him, the need to be with him. He gently took Dark's face within his slender hands when his shadow looked up at him and leaned forward, kissing Dark with as much of the love he felt tearing him apart inside as he could. Link's heart fluttered at the soft noises Dark made as he pushed away his lover's fears. "I love you, too," Link whispered against Dark's lips. "I love you."

Dark kissed him, softly this time, his hands tender as he ran his fingers through Link's hair, caressed his back, squeezed his thin hips. "I know, Link… Just please… Be more careful. I might not always be there for you. I don't ever want to know that, if it happens, your death will be on my hands. That I will have killed my very soul, my heart, my reason to live. Promise..."

"I promise," Link whispered, feeling his heart ache at Dark's confession. He knew that these words pained Dark so because he felt the imminent threat that the evil king posed, because he knew that even though he was Link's lover, his soul mate- when Link faced Ganon, he would be alone. He knew that in the end, he would be forced to betray his lover.

They made love again a while later. This time, Dark was slow and considerate, he never pushed Link onto his back or lunged into him without restraint; it seemed as though, now that he had spoken his fears aloud, Dark was afraid that Link wasn't real; that he would disappear if he hurt him, if he pushed to hard. If he loved him too much. Link cried when he came, and Dark held him closely, murmuring in his ear a soft lullaby that only they knew. He didn't know why he'd cried, all he knew was that when Dark had pulled out, when he had been separated from his lover, it felt like he was being torn apart.

They fell asleep after, Dark answering the pleas of his tired body a while before Link fell asleep. He sat up a few minutes later when Dark's breathing had evened out, and his grip had relaxed from it's tight hold enough that he could move without waking him. Link reached out, running his hands over Dark's raven hair, tracing the familiar shape of his lips. His heart clenched at the thought of this face, this beautiful face, sneering at him, turning against him under Ganondorf's power. He shook the images out of his head, lying down once more beside Dark.

"I love you, Dark Link. I don't know if this will end, if you are really yourself, or just an image created by Ganondorf to torture me; all I know is that when you die, every part of me that lives will die with you. I will die with you, because _you_are my life." He fell silent, aware that Navi had returned from wherever she'd gone off to.

She wisely remained silent, her gaze pausing on Dark as she flew quietly to Link, landing on his shoulder. Link cried, his fears and emotions flowing all at once to the surface when she touched his cheek softly with a glowing hand. Her eyes grew soft as she stroked her Kokiri-Hylian's cheek, remaining silent, unjudging. She knew how much Link wanted things to stay as they were; just him and Dark, together.

He felt a blue haze fall over his vision and silently thanked the Goddesses for blessing him with an understanding fairy as he fell asleep. After a moment, Navi, too, lay down between the two men. Looking up at Link's shadow, she shared the sadness of her master, knowing that no matter how much he loved Link, he would still be responsible for ripping out the Hero's heart when he betrayed him. She could forgive this knowledge, knowing Ganondorf's power; what she couldn't forgive, however, was her master's inability to remain happy. Fighting a wave of panic that came from her sleeping Kokiri-turned-Hylian as he faced yet another nightmare, she sent a wave of blue sparks into him, quelling the dark images of a wild haired Gerudo man from his mind. Tonight, at least, the future could wait. Tonight, they could still dream of being happy.

But only for tonight.

------

**GAH. Why couldn't I just leave it at the end of a beautiful and steamy, mutual love fest? Well, I mean, come on. There has to be SOME semblance of a plot for me to have as an excuse to write this crap.**

**Review if you will, if not, each to his own. I hope this story has inspired and/or thrilled/disgusted you (lol if it disgusted you WHY on earth did you continue to read), and made you want to play LOZ again. Because now I most certainly do. **

**-grins and goes to play Zelda while thinking yummy LxDL thoughts-**

**PS. I really like this pairing, plus the semi-plot I have going here. If there is a positive response in reviewers, I may find myself encouraged to write either a story or an equal or longer length one-shot as a sequel/bonus to this. **

**Much love, **

**Hadasah.**


	2. PREVIEW

**Hello all my lovely reviewers! I must say I am still quite red from reading all of your reviews... GAHH I love you all so much for all the support, enthusiasm, and general LxDL love support. It made me so much more relaxed about writing slash and putting myself out there. (hahaha pun INTENDED)**

**I have to say I have been so busy with school and exams and now that that is all out of the way and I only have one week of intense theatre training (hence the source of all my angsty writing bahaha) coming up and then the ENTIRE summer to write all of our favourite types of smut and GAY love. Sorry, I am so excited right now to just write and have fun again. This is seriously like a wayyy too obsessive love for me. My muse is currently hitting me .. on the head... ahem... with rage at how I have yet to finish some of my other stories but is also being a fickle bitch as they want me to write all my slash plots first. Gah. You torture me so, my lovely writing deity.**

**Anyways, I wanted to let you all know that YES a second installment is on its -turtleish- way. And I decided that you all deserved a preview of the next writing because you were all so amazing and gave such great feedback.**

**ENJOY.**

x-L-D-L-x-L-D-L-x-L-D-L-x-L-D-L-x

Dark managed to drag Link out into the desert with a lure of surprise and raced the slowly-tanning Hylian out into the desert, enjoying the way the hot, scented wind whipped through the Hero's pale blond hair, now freed from its green cap. Link had all but given up wearing the hat, but refused on occasion of tradition or past to remove the hat, no matter how much Dark threatened or cajoled his lover. But today, he had managed to cause Link's mind to fall on other things than his state of dress. But to be fair.. It seemed as if the Hero was purposefully showing off his lean form with one of the more open, slitted robes the Gerudo had lent him. He still wore his white breeches underneath -still possessing that annoying streak of modesty-, but Dark enjoyed the view presented even with the minor setback of extra clothes. He himself wore nothing but low-slung desert riding pants, tight around the hips and thighs, and loose in the calves, where the fabric flowed silkily around his ankles. He wore ankle high Gerudo boots, made of dodongo leather and lacing up tightly to provide extra support when standing in the saddle.

Although Link would never say as such, the sight of Dark's exposed, muscled torso caused a deep tightening within the pit of his being, one which constantly interrupted the flow of his thoughts and speech. Dark noticed, however subtle Link thought he may have been acting, and noted with smug satisfaction the constant straying of his lover's eyes to his exposed chest and the the deep V that was formed by the protrudence of his hips and the dip of his pelvis.

He shifted uncomfortably under the growing heat that was his sword pressing close to his flesh across his shoulders. A slow river of sweat had begun to gather beneath the blade, and was steadily trickling down his spine. A tingle, a slow sensation of stinging began to grow across his shoulders, and he grimaced as Epona leapt across a small rocky incline, the blade clanging harshly across his aching shoulders. He glanced across to see Dark, bare skinned, wondering how the man was managing his own sword in the heat. He felt immensely foolish when he saw that Dark had wrapped his sword in leather and had strapped it to Itzal's side, protecting both himself and his mount from the heat with the thick cover of cloth that held it in place.

After a few more moments of intense burning, he cursed out loud and pulled Epona to a halt, surprising his dark-haired companion, who reigned in Itzal quickly and turned back to see what the issue was. Link leapt from Epona's back, pulling the Master Sword from its place of agony atop his back and tossing it into the sand. Spitefully, he kicked a small mound of dirt over the blade, which gleamed fanatically back at him. His back protested the movements and he let out a small hiss as he reached over his head and pulled the robe off, sliding it carefully over his abused shoulders.

He heard Dark give out a small grunt of surprise, and felt cool fingertips gently tracing the almost-brand his sword had left him through the thin Gerudo robes.

A moment later, of bracing himself against his concerned mare and Dark managing to pull him off to help him stand straight, Dark pulled Link up behind him on Itzal. Before he mounted in front of Link, he soaked the wide sash that wrapped around his waist in water from Link's bottle. He placed the sash carefully over the skinned-looking reddened flesh across the blond's shoulders and wrapped it around the his bare chest and back several times, tying it off and looking up at Link's pained groan when he tightened the knot.

"Sorry," Dark muttered as he slung his leg over Itzal's back. Link rested his forehead against Dark's back, letting the surprisingly cool flesh in front of him ease the throbbing in his skull as the pain began to magnify, deciding all at once to make its appearance. "We'll go to the Fairy's Fountain, Link. It will be another hour or so... but you should get that healed. Are you comfortable?"

"That would depend. Your back feels nice and cool but mine still feels like I've dived into a damn lava pit." His voice was extremely irritated and Link felt badly about snapping at his lover after he spoke. Dark however, gave a low chuckle, tapping Itzal's sides into a gallop.

"Only an hour, Link." He laughed again before Link felt him lean forward, the bands of muscle across his back flexing as he urged his stallion onward.

Cursing everything around him at that moment, Link buried his face in the skin before him, closing his eyes and ignoring the throb from his hurting shoulders.

An hour later, exactly as Dark had promised, he was awoken by the shadow's gait across the waves of sand. He woke fully, and found that Dark had draped him across his back, holding onto his thighs as they wrapped around his hips, his arms dangly loosely over his shoulders, his head nestled in the crook of Dark's neck.

"Awake now, darling?" Dark's amused simper broke through the rest of his midday bleariness, and he pushed himself upright against Dark's back.

"Put me down," he growled, his tone's sincerity broken by the fact that he was smiling at Dark's antics.

"You love it," Dark responded, his voice a husky growl. Link felt stomach tighten as Dark's hands shifted and caressed his thighs, taking advantage of the flesh in his grasp.

"Dark! I'm injured- c-control yourself!" He stuttered as he felt Dark's hands inexorably shifting nearer his hips. Link shivered against Dark's back, once again made _very _aware of his lover's naked back, pressed close to his body.

"That is soon to be mended," Dark said, as they passed into the darkened tunnel that came before the Fairy's Fountain. Link shifted, attempting to banish the sensation of Dark's hands dancing over his flesh as his lover continued forth in the half gloom, towards the steadily growing glow that was the fountain's ever present illumination.

He gasped at the feeling of cool water lapping at his ankles through his boots as Dark waded into the fountain's crystal water. Link slipped slowly from Dark's grasp as the water rose around their hips, gently cradling him as Dark unbound the long strip of cloth still wound around his back. He groaned softly as Dark took hold of his waist, his red eyes boring into his own blue as he dipped Link, almost romantically, back into the water. Link watched, fascinated at the clouded expression on the shadow's face as it swam above him through the water.

A moment later, Link let out his breath as his blond hair swept away from his face at the force of the water, rushing past him as Dark lifted him from the fountain. Link gasped, his hands grasping at Dark's shoulders as his shadow pulled him close, his legs wrapping around him as Dark held him by the hips, his hands gentle but firm.

"Dark..." Link's voice slipped from him, unbidden as he met those red eyes. He felt Dark's hands tighten on him, then pull him tight to his body, their hips meeting, water rippling around their waists.

"Hold still," Dark whispered. A small orb danced around their heads, Link and Dark both turning to follow its path as it moved, softly, across his aching shoulders. The fairy's tiny voice lingered around them as she sang a soft lullaby, the other fairies that floated among the vaulted ceiling of the fountain joining in with faint echoes of song. Link felt his eyes closing as soft warmth wrapped around his shoulders.

A while later, he heard Dark's low voice, a rumble, break through the dreamy clouds of his sleeping mind. He was warm, dry, and the stinging in his shoulders was completely vanished. He felt Dark shifting next to him, felt warm blankets drape over him, felt Dark's hands pull him close, his body safe within the bend of Dark's own. Utterly safe, he slept.

Dark woke the next morning, feeling rejeuvenated and relaxed with Link wrapped tightly within his grasp. He felt a self-satisfied smirk growing on his lips as he traced the bare skin of Link's torso with his fingertips.

Link came awake, his skin tingling as he felt Dark's hands growing bold on his flesh, his hands reaching around his waist and dipping lower, towards the top of his breeches. He struggled for a moment, rolling away from Dark's inquiring hands and turning to glare at his counterpart, who smiled and reached out for him again.

Link pushed himself to his knees, scrambling backwards, and placed a hand behind him to steady himself- and fell backwards into the fairy's fountain. He resurfaced to the small chorus of fairy laughter, high above him in the carved and engraved walls of the shrine, and Dark's rasping chuckle. Grumbling, he struggled to his feet, wiping his sodden hair from his eyes.

When he looked up again, he started; Dark stood before him in the water, his red eyes fixed upon him. Link looked down, then looked back up immediately, his face burning. Dark had apparently decided this would be an opportune time for a bath.

"I'll just... get.. out.." Link muttered, moving towards the edge of the pool, his hands wrapping around the lip of marble and bracing himself to push his body up. He felt cool hands wrap around his waist, a nose bury itself in his back, wet hair press against his spine. Dark's heated breath flowed over his skin, goosebumps following the path of his shadow's breath as it rippled across him.

"I like you just where you are right now," Dark whispered.

x-L-D-L-x-L-D-L-x-L-D-L-X-L-D-L-x

**I AM A CRUEL WOMAN to leave you all at such a ... crucial point. Hehehehhee...**

**Anyway, I also wanted to report that I am also currently on work with **

**1) KH yaoi - Akuroku (first person, present tense, it is QUITE a challenge actually, but I love it.)**

**2) Bleach yaoi - Ichix UNKNOWN AS OF NOW. **

**Also, I am quite intrigued by the possibility of adding some neko!Ichigo into this as well... because him in heat with all the shinigami and espada after him is just TOO damn hot to pass up.**

**So... This is it. I want all of your opinions as to WHO precious Ichigo shall submit his lovely ehm... self. And also whether or not he shall be: human, shinigami, hollow, neko, captain, arrancar...**

**So, either message me or review as to your answers...**

**1) Kenpachi (works well with the current story and I absolutely LOVE how dominant he is..)**

**2) Grimmjow (also works quite well with the current story and he is also quite the dom kitty...)**

**3) YOUR CHOICE. Tell me. like eg: Nnoitra, Starrk, Urahara, Renji, Byakuya, Ukitake, Shunsui... You choose. **

**But seriously, this pairing must be SOMEWHAT logically acceptable and totally smexy. CHOOSE WISELY. I really want good feedback so give me reasons! I am writing the story as best I can but I seriously want my seme NOW. **

**Thanks for all your feedback guys. I REALLY REALLY appreciate it.**

**I have another KenxIchi story already in the mix so that will also be coming out (BAHAHA ANOTHER BAD PUN... sorry I was just reading all the "Annoying Orange" stuff and the urge to laugh obnoxiously has not left me ever since...) It's about Ichigo "coming of age". I will let you interpret that little snippit all on your lonesome. -evil grin-**

**Hadasah**

**(PS, the second installment of LxDL as previewed above is filled with angsty smex and possibly some non-con from ... past characters. IM EXCITED.)**


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